Operating a brothel is quite challenging, especially with the new social distancing regulations in place. Just like many other enterprises in Nevada, legal brothels have been indefinitely closed. But Madam Bella Cummins, proprietor of Bella s Hacienda legal brothel in Wells, Nevada, has found a way to reopen her business- she acquired an escort license.
With an escort license, the brothel s employees and customers will be able to hook up, go for dates, but they must follow the social distancing rules and are prohibited from having sex. The sex worker will get paid for acting as a date and providing companionship for a limited time.
During the lockdown, Madam Bella allowed some of her workers to live in the brothel rent-free, but after a long period of no income, she knew she had to get creative to earn an income.
In an interview with the media, Madam Bella said that many other businesses had been allowed to reopen, but Governor Sisolak has been adamant about not reopening legal brothels. This has caused a financial strain on many of her licensed sex workers.
She further said that keeping the brothel shut for an inconclusive period and crushing so many dedicated ladies’ financial future wasn’t, and still isn’t, the correct move. She is assertive that with the escort license, more sex workers will start earning again.
Madam Bella is also a founding member of the Onesta Foundation, a non-profit association whose goal is to support Nevada sex workers and promote the legalization of prostitution throughout the United States.
Currently, Nevada is the only state in the U.S. that has legalized prostitution in the form of licensed and controlled brothels.
